PilotPal vs Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PilotPal
This app provides FAA aviation airport charts and facility directories for easy flight planning. Access airport diagrams, frequencies, elevation, and helipad information offline. Stay updated with monthly chart revisions and quickly find nearby or favorite airports.
- Offline charts
- Airport Facility Directories
- Airport Diagrams
- Airport Information (Maps, Frequencies, Elevation, Helipads)
- Monthly updated FAA charts
- Nearby and favorite airports
- Airport search
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PilotPal is the easiest way to flight plan. PilotPal brings the FAA airport facility directory and Airport Diagrams to your pocket. Features: • Offline Charts: Easily download airports or entire regions for offline use • Airport Facility Directories • Airport Diagrams • Weather via METAR and TAF • Wind maps • Airport Information including: • Maps • Frequencies • Elevation • Helipads • Updated FAA charts every month so you're always up to date. • Nearby airports: Easily find airports around you • Favorite airports: Save your favorites for quick access • Airport search: Easily find any airport or helipad • Dark mode • iPad support Built by real pilots with a love for aviation Feedback or issues: tinybyteapps@gmail.com Legal: Airport facility directories and airport diagrams are provided by the FAA. Always consult appropriate and available sources to prepare for your flight. Our privacy policy is available at: https://pilotpal-1139.firebaseapp.com/privacypolicy.htm Our terms of service is available at: https://pilotpal-1139.firebaseapp.com/termsofuse.html
Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)
Easily create ICAO-formatted flight plans with this app. Store aircraft details and link them to multiple plans. Generate PDF versions for authorities and utilize a beta map function for route planning and airport searches.
- Create ICAO flight plans
- Store aircraft details
- Link aircraft to flight plans
- Generate PDF flight plans
- Beta map function for route planning
- Airport search
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This application will facilitate the creation of flight plans in ICAO format, quick and easy. You can store the number of aircraft you want and link them with the various flight plans that you store in the application. With just a couple of clicks, you will have your flight plan in PDF format ready to be presented to the local aeronautical authority. You can use the included beta map function to search for airport, route planification, check altitude, speed, heading, and more. You can try this app for 14 days or create up to 10 different flight plans, then you must purchase a subscription to continue using it. Terms of Service: https://www.luarnol.com/fplmaker/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://www.luarnol.com/fplmaker/privacy.html Note: Map function must not be used for real flying, it will need internet to show maps, shown information may be wrong. It can be removed at any time.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) at 100% against PilotPal's 55%. Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 3 months). PilotPal's advantage is ratings volume (663 vs 5). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. PilotPal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PilotPal has 663 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 55% of PilotPal's written reviews are positive against 100% of Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)'s.
PilotPal ships an update every 3 months, Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PilotPal | Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (663 ratings) | 5.0 (5 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 55.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 663 — better | 5 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 6 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 16.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 19 MB | 325 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Tinybyte Apps LLC | Luarnol LLC |
Customer experience
PilotPal
Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)
Bugs and requests
PilotPal
Reported bugs
5 issues- Subscription verification loop - shows already subscribed but denies access
- Airport diagrams not displaying despite active subscription
- App stopped working after February update
- General app functionality failures
- Missing settings/preferences menu
Requested features
6 requests- Airport diagram printing functionality
- Ability to sort favorites tab
- Front and back page information inclusion
- Improved search functionality for VOR locations
- Legend/index documentation
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- Comprehensive chart supplement data (VFR corridors, visual reporting points, VOR test locations)
Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
PilotPal
- Airport Diagrams$0.991 Month
- PilotPal Monthly3 Days trial$2.991 Month
- PilotPal Pro3 Days trial$19.991 Year
Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)
- Monthly subscription$0.991 Month
- Premium Monthly subscription$2.991 Month
- Annually subscription$9.991 Year
Questions
Is PilotPal free?
Is Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) free?
Which has better reviews, PilotPal or Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)?
Do PilotPal or Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker) have ads?
Which is updated more often, PilotPal or Flight Plan Maker (FPL Maker)?
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